The Web site of the Chillicothe Times-Bulletin hit a milestone Thursday with 10,000 hits.
Launching the Web site mid-March, the staff of the weekly newspaper made a commitment to getting more up-to-date news out to Chillicotheans via the Web.
"We've reformulated how we do things in order to get the news Chillicotheans want faster to them," said editor Marianne Gillespie. "We are no longer forced to disseminate news once a week. We now can share at least the basics of stories we are working on throughout the week."
Chillicotheans also will see news specifically for the Web and also news specifically designated to the Wednesday print edition.
"The Web complements the newspaper as we cannot print every photo we take or information submitted to us," said Gillespie. "For example, we had many photos we could not print relating to Halloween events of Merchant Trick or Treat, Pearce's Spooktacular, the haunted house at the library and IVC's Halloween party. But, residents who visited us on the Web could still see, and buy, those photos."
Another addition, which is expected to be seen more frequently, is video of events. Right now video of the costume contest at Pearce's Spooktacular is available on the Web.
On average, the Web site is split between new visitors and returning visitors. Wednesday and Thursday are the most popular days to visit each week, with the weekend not as popular. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. are the high-traffic times, with 3 to 4 p.m. garnering the highest readers.
About 80 percent of the visitors use Internet Explorer via cable or DSL.
The most viewed pages include the homepage, followed by news, obituaries and sports.
The Aug. 13 Rivertown Rumblings column had the most hits of a single page, followed by Baseball's Littlest Fans. Breaking news of police and fire also remains high. In addition, the photo extra of Billy Bash, the benefit for Billy Galindo, also is popular.
While Illinois remains the place most people log on to the Web site, people from all 50 states have visited www.chillicothetimesbulletin.com. Following Illinois, people in California, New York, Georgia, Florida and Texas have viewed Chillicothe news. About 50 percent of visitors use search engines to find the Web site.
"We suggest readers bookmark us, or better yet, make us your homepage," said Gillespie. "That way, you will always see the newest items and not have to type in our long address. For those who don't have a computer, visit either the Chillicothe Public Library our your local library and check us out."
The Chillicothe Times-Bulletin is read around the world as people in more than 30 countries have clicked on the Web site. Most popular is the Netherlands, followed by Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Egypt, India, Belgium and Italy.
"We are excited to be able to connect with former residents, relatives of those in town and more through our Web site," said Gillespie. "We are proud to be 'Chillicothe's Choice Since 1883' and look forward to moving into a new era. So many people asked us about getting a Web site, and now we can deliver news to your home not only on Wednesday, but every day of the week.
"We hope you'll continue to read the Chillicothe Times-Bulletin in print and online. We enjoy getting feedback so that we can make our service to Chillicotheans even better," Gillespie said.
